Wednesday, June 29, 2011

The other day, not more than 72 hours after I had arrived home from my second trip to Haiti in less than a year, someone at a party I was at, smiled, and asked, “So, how was your trip?” I took a breath, and willed away all the words, thoughts, and emotions that question brings forth in me, and said, what was the only appropriate thing I could say, given the festive setting of that moment, “It was intense”, I replied, and looked away. How can I begin to adequately describe the heart wrenching poverty that is Haiti? How does one explain that children don’t have clothes or food, and that I watched families bathe themselves in the same water they threw garbage in, and drank from - because that’s the only thing they can do? One of the hardest things about coming back from Haiti is figuring out what you can say to whom. Because this type of poverty is inconceivable in this land of plenty, people can’t seem to wrap their minds around it – I know I couldn’t until I had seen it firsthand. Since returning, I have held my tongue after discovering that even those closest to me, couldn’t bear to hear the stories I had brought back from the Western Hemisphere’s poorest land – I can’t blame them, I generally tell tales that bring smiles, not looks of shock and horror. So, what, besides, “It was intense,” will I tell people when they ask me about my travels? The English folktale “The Old Woman in the Vinegar Bottle” gives me a clue. It concerns a woman who lives unhappily inside of a vinegar bottle, until one day a fairy happens along. The fairy tells the woman all she must do is turn around three times, and she will get the house she deserves. The woman does so, and finds herself in a cottage by the sea. So busy is the woman with gazing at the water, that she forgets to say, “Thank you,” to the fairy. Not noticing this, the fairy flies off. After some time the fairy returns, and finds the woman is not happy with the cottage, and wants a bigger house. Again, the fairy helps her, and again, the woman forgets to give thanks. More time passes, and the fairy once again visits the woman, who now asks for a castle. Once again, the fairy gives her what she wants, and receives no gratitude. Months go by, and one day the fairy returns to find the woman angrily yelling at her, “I want my own planet!!!!” The fairy asks the woman to turn around three times as she did every other time, and this time, the woman lands right back inside of the vinegar bottle. Just like that old woman, I forget to be grateful - for electricity, plumbing, a roof over my head, more food than I really need to eat. But being in Haiti is a powerful reminder of all I, and every other American, no matter how poor, has. It’s soooooooooooooooo easy to take things for granted, so easy to feel that the modern conveniences I enjoy are a right, and not a privilege that not everyone has access to. So what will I say when people ask, “So, how was Haiti?” I will say, “It makes me grateful for every single thing in my life.”

UPCOMING PERFORMANCESWhat you see below are my public performances, no school, camp, or private events are listed – hope you’ll stop by one of these public performances!!

June 20116/7: Fair Haven Library, NJ 3:15PM6/10-6/22 I’ll be in Haiti with Clowns Without Borders – visit their site: clownswithoutborders.org I was there in October – look for my blog entry called “The Happy Man’s Shirt” to read about it! New blog entry about this last trip is coming!!6/24: Montclair Public Library, NJ 11AM, 1PM6/29:Neptune Library, NJ 3:30PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families.(More info on the circus below) Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday, Tuesday, and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program: is a community outreach program of the Big Apple Circus, anaward winning presenter of live family entertainment and a leadingnot-for-profit performing arts institution.Using juggling, mime, magic, music, puppetry, storytelling and lots ofimprovisation, we are specially trained “doctors of delight” who bring thejoy and excitement of the one ring circus to the bedsides of hospitalizedchildren one to five days each week, year round, nationwide. As MeredithVieira, our national spokesperson and honorary clown doctor, phrased it:From ringside to bedside! Clown Care makes “clown rounds,” a parody ofmedical rounds where humor is the prescribed treatment. As “clown doctors”,we are professional performers who work one-on-one with the children, theirparents, and hospital staff to ease the stress of serious illness byreintroducing laughter and fun as natural parts of life.A national network of host hospitals, generous contributions and grants fromindividuals, foundations and corporations support Clown Care.

Storytelling Arts: Here’s the organization I do a lot of storytelling residencies in schools with: They are dedicated to bringing the art of storytelling to underserved populations. Storytelling Arts works with schools and community organizations to bring the benefits of storytelling to a varied audience. Storytelling Arts programs serve to boost literacy and build community through:• Classroom residencies in schools • Professional development opportunities for teachers • Programs in community organizations • Educational services in juvenile detention centersWebsite: storytellingarts.netDevotion Yoga: Devotion Yoga is a community dedicated to creating a safe, peaceful, and non-competitive environment which offers individuals the opportunity to learn the practice of yoga through classes, workshops and related events. We are committed to providing high quality, inspiring, unique, and balanced programming that support our members in living a healthy and fulfilling life. Website: devotionyoga.com

Saturday, June 4, 2011

I’m involved in three different school residencies right now, so most of my work is for them at the moment. Below are some places the general public can come and see me!!

June 20116/7: Fair Haven Library, NJ 3:15PM6/10-6/22 I’ll be in Haiti with Clowns Without Borders – visit their site: clownswithoutborders.org I was there in October – look for my blog entry called “The Happy Man’s Shirt” to read about it!6/24: Montclair Public Library, NJ 11AM, 1PM6/29:Neptune Library, NJ 3:30PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families.(More info on the circus below) Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program: is a community outreach program of the Big Apple Circus, anaward winning presenter of live family entertainment and a leadingnot-for-profit performing arts institution.Using juggling, mime, magic, music, puppetry, storytelling and lots ofimprovisation, we are specially trained “doctors of delight” who bring thejoy and excitement of the one ring circus to the bedsides of hospitalizedchildren one to five days each week, year round, nationwide. As MeredithVieira, our national spokesperson and honorary clown doctor, phrased it:From ringside to bedside! Clown Care makes “clown rounds,” a parody ofmedical rounds where humor is the prescribed treatment. As “clown doctors”,we are professional performers who work one-on-one with the children, theirparents, and hospital staff to ease the stress of serious illness byreintroducing laughter and fun as natural parts of life.A national network of host hospitals, generous contributions and grants fromindividuals, foundations and corporations support Clown Care.

Storytelling Arts: Here’s the organization I do a lot of storytelling residencies in schools with: They are dedicated to bringing the art of storytelling to underserved populations. Storytelling Arts works with schools and community organizations to bring the benefits of storytelling to a varied audience. Storytelling Arts programs serve to boost literacy and build community through:• Classroom residencies in schools • Professional development opportunities for teachers • Programs in community organizations • Educational services in juvenile detention centersWebsite: storytellingarts.netDevotion Yoga: Devotion Yoga is a community dedicated to creating a safe, peaceful, and non-competitive environment which offers individuals the opportunity to learn the practice of yoga through classes, workshops and related events. We are committed to providing high quality, inspiring, unique, and balanced programming that support our members in living a healthy and fulfilling life. Website: devotionyoga.com

A few years ago, in a class I was taking on personal essay writing, we were asked to put our own individual spin on something that was common, everyday, and average. A topic that would be completely relatable to your grandparents in Florida, your hipster friend in Brooklyn, and even your eye rolling teenage niece. As I recall there was an offering about food (good choice – who doesn’t eat, right?), stress (another goodie – to use one of my favorite words, good old stress is ubiquitous – love that word!!), and of course MONEY (no need to say anything about that one). After toying around with issues I thought worthy of CNN, or at least the local news, I decided to go with something as (here comes my favorite word again) UBIQUITOUS, it seems, as air - GOSSIP!! Yup, I went with good old “behind your back, digging in your business, best shared in hushed tones” gossip, because, seriously, who amongst us has NEVER, looked right, then left, leaned into a friend, co-worker, or relative, and whispered some version of this line, “You know what I heard about….” I don’t know for sure, but I suspect that even Mother Theresa shared a juicy tidbit or two while working in the slums of Calcutta. Gossip seems to be one of those things that we humans just can’t seem to get away from, and enough of. Look at the internet, TV, newspapers, and, the grand dame of all readable gossip – the magazines by the check-out line in the supermarket. I know more about some housewives from NJ after an average grocery shopping, than I do about my own sister!! And then there’s the face to face exchange of information – the checking to make sure the subject of your conversation is not within earshot, the little chuckle and eye brow raise, just before you divulge the secret you have about your gossipee (you, of course being the gossiper). Often these things snowball, one little morsel of gossip leads to another, until your conversation is glutted with “Somebody told me that..” and “Can you believe about…” And while chatting away about that friend, co-worker, politician or movie star, might feel fun and festive, and a perfectly acceptable thing to do in excess with friends – I’ve been finding more and more that, just as eating too many jelly beans on Easter leaves me feeling sick, and somehow shameful – so does gossiping. These days I find myself walking away from a gossip fest wanting to take a shower, and brush my teeth – I feel at once stupid for having gotten into that type of conversation, guilty for any- thing I said to fuel the fire, and bewildered about how – despite my best intentions I gravitated towards the gossip, the way a two year old is transfixed by soap bubbles. I read somewhere that a good way to break the gossip habit was to not talk about someone who wasn’t in front of you – for ill or good, for a week - do I even have to tell you how impossible that was??? So, this spring, when I was asked to tell “character education stories” – meaning stories that taught some kind of social behavioral lesson to a group of middle schoolers – I knew exactly what my topic would be. Perhaps, my nobler mind thought – I could help these kids jump off the gossip train before they were as addicted to it as I was. And so I told them the story “Feathers”. There is a woman who is the town gossip, and even though her neighbors are on to her loose lipped ways, they listen anyway. One day a stranger comes to town, and the woman (I know there’s a TV show called Gossip Girl, so we’ll call her Gossip Woman), begins to spread lies that he is a criminal of some kind. After being confronted by some of the town people, and disproving the lies told about him, the stranger demands justice, and goes before the village judge. Once in the courtroom, the Gossip Woman grows frightened, and falls to her knees assuring the judge and all who will listen that she will never gossip again, that in fact, she takes all her words back. As punishment, the judge instructs the Gossip Woman, to take a feather pillow outdoors, shake all the feathers out, and then put them back in. Once outside, the woman finds the task difficult, as the wind blows the feathers in every direction. After hours of trying to capture all the feathers, the woman, defeated, returns to the judge and says, “Your Honor, I couldn’t do it. No matter what I did, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get those feathers back in the pillow.” The judge replies, “And it is the same thing with words. Once spoken, no matter what you do, no matter how hard you try, you can never really get them back.” These days, when I feel the urge to get my gossip on – I try, I repeat TRY, to remember this tale. And, every once in a while the image of those feathers blowing in the air pops into my mind, and I manage to keep my mouth shut!!

Julie's Bio

Julie Pasqual is a storyteller who's performances are infused with physicality and movement from her dance training, comic moments from her work in clowning, a deep love of language from her work as an actress, and a love of world cultures and folktales born from her travels to (so far) 49 of the 50 states, and 12 countries. Using all of her performance skills, and an ever present spirit of playfulness, Julie brings stories to audiences from pre-schoolers to prisoners, and everyone in between in single shows, assemblies, workshops, and residencies. Schools, libraries, festivals, museums, group homes, shelters, detention centers, and even weddings, have been some of her venues. When not telling tales, she can be found performing for Healthy Humor, a program designed to bring joy and fun to hospitalized children and their families, teaching the ancient practice of yoga at several studios, and domestic abuse shelters, and travelling to international schools around the globe as a teaching artist for ISTA (International School Theatre Alliance, as well as sweating as much as she can at her local gym!!!

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Upcoming Performances

Many of my “tellings” are private performances for schools, or part of ongoing residencies I have. The following are some venues where the general public can see me. Hope to see you there!!FEBRUARY 2017:2/4/17: Hempstead Library, NY 2PM2/4/17: Battery Park City, NYC 4:30PM2/25/17: Rahway Library, NJ 2PMAPRIL 2017:4/29/17: CT Storytelling Festival, New London, CT, 9AM, 1:30, 7:30!!MAY 2017:Manasquan Library, NJ 3:15PM

SO, WHERE'S JULIE WHEN SHE'S NOT TELLING TALES??

Well, she might be...performing in hospitals for children and their families for Healthy Humor a program designed to bringing humor and joy to the pediatric patients, or she might be...teaching yoga at Hudson Yoga Project in Hoboken, NJ, Yogamaya, The Bhakti Center, or at homeless and women's shelters in NYC. Or she might be...stilt walking, clowning, or dancing at various events. Or she might be travelling as a teaching artist for ISTA (International School Theatre Alliance)

Julie Live!

What They're Saying about Julie!

Julie Pasqual brings stories to LIFE. She is a storyteller of the first magnitude, with a collection of tales from all over the world. If you have the mistaken impression that children are bored by traditional storytelling, Julie will, with one beat of a drum, dance of her feet, or participatory shout from the audience, dispel your reservations. Julie is a true griot, a tribal teller who carries stories forward so that current generation and generations to come can learn the stories and the art of the teller. I have never had Julie at the library when the audience didn't leave smiling from ear to ear and repeating the rhythms and stories that she has taught them.

From Lisa Herskowitz, Youth Services Librarian, East Northport, Public Library.

"Julie Pasqual is one of the best storytellers we have hosted at our library. Julie is a whirlwind of positive energy who knows how to work a room filled with children of varied ages as well as adults. Her performance, which was the perfect blend of humor, physicality, and poignancy, held everyone's attention. Everyone walked out with a smile! I look forward to inviting Julie back in the near future."

To whom it may concern,

Julie Pasqual is a truly amazing performer! From the minute she steps on stage – even if the stage is a respect commanding school chapel or a huge, undecorated school gym – she holds the audience spellbound. Because Dream On Productions has presented more than 40 performances in Argentina by this excellent storyteller, I was treated to a wide variety of tales. My favorite one is “Unana,” a traditional folktale where the mother goes after an elephant who ate her children, and has to be swallowed along with them in order to rescue them. I also love the story of Death and her godson, a story told in cultures throughout the world. Her stories, her voices, her facial expressions, her stage presence make her performances unforgettable.

The fact that she uses the whole of her body to convey emotions and images that get the idea across makes her unique among the excellent performers we normally schedule, and perfect for our audiences of ESL learners.

Julie is furthermore a joy to work with and makes the entire experience not only a delight for the audience but also for the tour organizers. Just to mention a couple of examples, she was most co-operative trying to resolve an issue with a flight schedule change by the airline, and very patient signing autographs for long lines of school children.

In addition to my own opinion expressed above, we have received much feedback thanking Dream On and Julie, full of positive comments from teachers and children. As director of Dream On Productions, I heartily recommend her storytelling skills and professionalism.